Nga mihi nui ki a koutou. Greetings parents, students and members of the Berkley Normal Middle School Community. 

The first half of term one has been a fantastic start to the year! Our new year 7 students have settled into Berkley life seamlessly and all our learners are 'Taking Up The Challenge' with their academics and other opportunities on offer, such as optional promotions (morning and lunchtime activities).  We are also seeing record numbers of sign up's for sports and other activities, which is great to see.

The school is looking wonderful thanks to a number of upgrades to our buildings and grounds which took place over the summer holidays and early this term.  These changes are part of ongoing continuous improvement plan to ensure our school is the best it can be for our students and community.  We have refreshed all the student bathrooms, transformed a digi-tech space into an extra classroom and set up an amazing new digi-tech room.  We've also created optional communal spaces within a few of our classrooms with glass sliding doors being added and smart grass has replaced some of our smaller grass spaces in high foot traffic areas.

It has been a privilege to again host a contingent of Japanese students from Makuhari International Junior High School.  These students have just spent 12 days with us, learning about New Zealand school environments and engaging in a true kiwi experience by living with host families and taking part in cultural and scenic activities around the Waikato.  Thank you to host students and families for welcoming these guests into your homes.

Our EOTC (Education Outside The Classroom) programme, New Horizons 2025, is fast approaching and I know all our students are looking forward to partaking in their chosen activities.  Providing over 20 activities/camps is a mammoth task and I would like to thank all our staff for the extra work that goes into planning and delivering this awesome initiative. 

As colder mornings now seem to be upon us, please remind your children to wear correct Berkley uniform items to keep warm.  We have hoodies, fleece jerseys, puffer jackets, trackpants and beanies as our winter options - they can all be purchased from our uniform supplier (The Brandmakers).  Our office currently has a decent stock of 2nd hand Berkley hoodies and fleece's available for purchase (Hoodies $10, fleeces $5), which students or parents can purchase with cash or eftpos.

Have a fantastic weekend.

Ngā mihi nui,

Nathan Leith

Principal

We are very excited about our upcoming New Horizons programme, which will take place from 8-10 April.  There are over 20 amazing activities on offer so there truely is something for everyone!  

All students have been told which New Horizon activity they have been placed into (based on their choices submitted) and they have all received an information letter detailing the activity (schedule, gear requirements, transport etc).  Please ensure you take some time to read through the letter with your child and ensure they are prepared in advance for their trip/activity.  Some activities require additional participant forms to be completed, refer to the letter for more information.   Forms can be completed online at https://www.berkley.school.nz/new-horizons-2025

If your child has not yet given you the information letter for their activity, please check with them if they are hiding it in their bag!  If they have lost their letter, they need to go and see the teacher in charge of their activity for another copy, as the letters contain important information.

From the 7th-19th March Berkley has had the privilege of hosting 26 students from Shibu Makuhari Junior High School in Japan.

During their time in New Zealand, they have had the opportunity to visit various local attractions such as the Waitomo Caves, the Agridome, Maungatautari Mountain and many more. Our Japanese students all agreed that their favourite activity whilst here in the Waikato was horse riding out at Karamu.

We would like to say a huge thank you to all of our Berkley host families for making our Japanese students feel so welcome. You have truly made this experience a memorable one for our Makuhari guests.  We are looking forward to some of our Berkley students getting the opportunity to reunite with their Japanese host students when participating in our Makuhari Trip to Japan in September this year.

The Ministry of Education has recently implemented STAR (Stepped Attendance Response).   STAR has been introduced to support the achievement of government targets for student attendance - which is that 80% of students to attend regularly (be at school more than 90% of the time).  The STAR framework sets out expectations for schools, parents and the ministry of education to ensure the target is being worked towards and students are supported to attend school regularly.

The programme is going to evolve over the next few years as the approaches are developed and we get closer to target achievement deadlines.  But for now, as a result of this new framework and to meet government requirements, Berkley is starting by progressively implementing some new procedures around attendance management.  Some changes that you might notice immediately, is that we are following up on absences and lateness more proactively and also starting to issue emails or letters to parents/guardians of students who are exceeding certain levels of absence. 

If you do receive any communication from us about attendance management, please understand that the intent of it is to support students regular attendance and we are providing the information for two key purposes;  firstly, to start communication with families about attendance and offer our support to work together on improving any attendance issues.  And secondly, to inform parents of data on attendance levels as we understand that sometimes it is difficult to keep track - a few days off here and there, late starts or early finishes can add up and sometimes students do not realise the impact of this on their attendance levels.

There is some more information below from the Ministry of Education, which provides a bit more detail on what STAR is.  If you have any questions or concerns in relation to the programme or attendance of your child, please feel to contact our attendance support team at Berkley

Tonisha Olsen, email - tomatara@berkley.school.nz

Joey Vainikolo, email - jvainikolo@berkley.school.nz

Why the STAR and what it means

The percentage of students attending regularly is very low in New Zealand compared to many other countries. Lifting school attendance is crucial for future success.

The STAR:

• sets the direction so that no student will be left to accumulate absences without an appropriate response to return them to regular attendance
• will help us achieve the Government’s target of 80% of students present for 90% of the term by 2030
• tells us what should happen when students do not attend school.

It sets clear expectations that school attendance is a priority, and that:

• parents will participate in the supports offered, and work with the school, the Ministry and other agencies where required, to return children to regular attendance
• schools and the Ministry of Education will take action when student absence is a concern
• students will understand why attendance is important, and that their parents, teachers and leaders will support them to be at school and learning.

The STAR helps us all to understand what should happen when students do not attend school.

Under the STAR framework, any student who reaches a clearly defined threshold of days absent will trigger an appropriate and proportionate response from their school and the Ministry. 

Activities can include the prosecution of parents for absences if appropriate support is offered and not taken up. The Ministry will not prosecute parents of students who are absent because of chronic illness or health conditions associated with a disability, or who are genuinely engaging with a school and the supports offered.

https://www.education.govt.nz/stepped-attendance-response-star

WIMS Cricket was held in week 4, with the Berkley team taking on Cambridge in their first game and Rototuna in their second.  They won both matches comfortably thanks to some great skills.  Here are a few highlights from each game

Berkley Swimming Sports

WIMS Swimming

Congratulations to all students who qualified to represent Berkley at the WIMS swimming event.  This was held at Morrinsville Swimzone on 11 March.  All students who attended represented Berkley with great values and attitudes.  We placed 4th School overall.  Our individual placings on the day were:

Chian Sat - 1st 50m Breaststroke (Yr8 Girls)

Charlotte Churstain -  1st 50m Backstroke (Y7 Girls)

Norah Gao - 2nd 50m Breaststoke, 2nd 50m Butterfly, 3rd 50m Freestyle (Y7 Girls) 

Hazel Johnson - 2nd 50m Breaststroke (Yr8 Girls) 

Girls Relay - 3rd 

Thanks to Mr Mieklejohn for all his organisation and support for our swimming events.

This week we had a boys team and a girls team head to the Waikato Intermediate and Middle School (WIMS) tournament at The Peak, Rototuna.  The teams have been training hard for the last few weeks and were rewarded for their efforts with wins in all their pool matches.  Both teams progressed through playoffs and both earned themselves a place in the final.  At the end of the day we claimed 2nd place in both the boys and girls divisions. 

Great job to everyone and thanks to Mr Vainikolo and Mr Purcell for your coaching and support!

Our Berkley students love performing arts (Music, Drama, Art and Media) - check out a bit of the creativity from the last few weeks

With winter on the way, rugby and football season is kicking off. For many families, that means gearing up with new boots—but for some, new boots can be a barrier to playing the sport they love.

That’s why Rebel Sport has teamed up with Replay NZ to launch the Rebel Sport Boot Drive this weekend, 22 & 23 March! We’re inviting Kiwis to donate their pre-loved boots at any Rebel Sport store nationwide. As a thank-you, they will receive 20% off their next pair.

Our amazing Public Health Nurse is Diana Loft.  She has provided this very informative newsletter for our school community.  Diana welcomes any contact from parents, caregivers or whanau for any health questions or issues.